The Mingus Big Band

One of the wonderful things about being in New York is the opportunity to hear the Mingus Big Band perform every Monday night at the Jazz Standard.   Mingus is truly one of the great American composers, and the Mingus Big Band is dedicated to preserving and performing his work.  I am reminded of the way in which the New York City Ballet keeps the work of Balanchine alive.   We have heard the Mingus Big Band a number of times, and every time I go I hear something I haven't heard before which astonishes me.  The ensemble this most recent time included 5 saxophones, 3 trombones and 3 trumpets, plus piano, bass and drums.   They did one Mingus tune called "Bird Calls"  (bird as in Charlie Parker) that featured the 5 saxes, ending in a wild and crazy fashion with all saxes soloing at once.   (One of the things I love about some of Mingus's compositions is the way things are constantly drifting in and out of chaos.) Another tune we heard, "GG Train", was about the GG train (now the G train) which as New Yorkers know, is the only subway line that doesn't go through Manhattan, and is a neglected and poorly functioning part of the system.  The tune is constantly shifting tempo; abrupt slowdowns mimic the subway train's halting progress.   And we heard the opening segments from the album "Let My Children Hear Music", one of my favorites (the original arranger, Sy Johnson, was in the audience), and a number from the epic composition "Epitaph".   Both of these are Mingus at his most "classical" and composed.  What a treat!